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Condensed Matter & Materials Physics profiles

​Professor Budakian's work in the past decade has focused on developing the experimental tools for ultra sensitive detection of electron and nuclear spins. He explores the application of these tools to address fundamental questions ranging from biology to quantum information.

Dr. Burkov is a theoretical condensed matter physicist, currently focusing on the effects of nontrivial electronic structure topology and electron-electron interactions on experimentally observable properties of quantum materials.

Soft matter is a cross disciplinary research field involving physics, chemistry, biology, and materials science. It studies physical systems that can be deformed relatively easily in response to external and internal physical and chemical conditions.

​Dr. Choi's research focuses on the development and application of the most advanced techniques in cold atom physics and quantum optics to probe the fundamental nature of the quantum world and to investigate macroscopic quantum phenomena with strongly interacting atoms and photons near nanoscale structures.

Dr. Forrest's research is focused on the behaviour of soft materials at the nanoscale. This includes self assembly of polymers, dynamics in thin films and near surface and interfaces. He has a long standing interest on the dynamics of glassy materials.

Professor Gingras’ main interests are in the field of theoretical condensed matter physics, with a focus on systems with random disorder. He is also interested in strongly correlated classical and quantum condensed matter systems subject to strongly competing, or frustrated, interactions.

The Quantum Materials Spectroscopy group, led by Dr. Hawthorn, studies Quantum Materials using resonant soft x-ray scattering and x-ray absorption spectroscopy at synchrotrons such as the Canadian Light Source. We use these tools to investigate intertwinned order in Quantum Materials and shed light on the long-standing mysteries of high temperature superconductors.

Dr. Hill's research is focused on the experimental study of materials whose exotic properties are dominated by the collective quantum mechanical nature of their electrons and defy explanation using current theoretical paradigms.

Would using quantum mechanics for information processing be an impediment or could it be an advantage? This is the fundamental question in the field of quantum information processing (QIP). QIP is a young field with an incredible potential impact reaching from the way we understand fundamental physics to technological applications.

Dr. Lupascu is an experimental physicist interested in the quantum dynamics of various types of physical systems and the application of quantum effects to build new types of detectors and quantum information processors. His Superconducting Quantum Device lab focuses on experimental research with superconducting devices, ranging from quantum bits for quantum information experiments, to superconducting resonators for loss characterization, among other projects.

​Dr. Mariantoni has a strong background in cutting-edge research on superconducting qubits and circuit quantum electrodynamics. He specializes in the experimental realization of low-level microwave detection schemes and pulsing techniques that allow for the measurement of ultra-low quantum signals generated by superconducting qubits coupled to on-chip resonators.

Dr. Melko's research interests involve strongly-correlated many-body systems, with a focus on emergent phenomena, ground state phases, phase transitions, quantum criticality, and entanglement. He emphasizes computational methods as a theoretical technique, in particular the development of state-of-the-art algorithms for the study of strongly-interacting systems.

​Dmitry Pushin uses his broad background to apply quantum information processing methods to improve neutron interferometry, with the goal of making it accessible to the general scientific community as a resource for studying fundamental questions of physics, dark energy, phase transitions in condensed matter, magnetic materials in functional devices and materials science.

Dr. Thompson's research explores block copolymer behaviour using self-consistent field theory (SCFT), one of the best theoretical tools available in soft condensed matter physics. The structures of nanocomposite materials are examined, and nanoscale filler particles are added to the polymer matrix to create hybrid materials. The mechanical properties of both nanocomposite and pure block copolymer systems are also being predicted using the SCFT approach.